Istanbul district mayor detained in corruption investigation
Rıza Akpolat, mayor of Istanbul’s Beşiktaş district and a member of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), has been detained in a corruption investigation. 47 other individuals have also been detained in connection with the investigation. CHP party chairman Özgür Özel has alleged that the investigation is politically motivated.
The investigation focuses on the alleged use of bribes to secure tender bids for lucrative projects organized by the district government. Akpolat and the 47 others taken into custody are alleged to have used bribes to secure the tenders for their own companies or companies close to them.
According to a statement released by the Istanbul prosecution office, the ‘for-profit scheme’ was carried out under the leadership of crime syndicate boss Aziz İhsan Aktaş.
Akpolat was reportedly arrested in the Balıkesir province in Turkey’s Marmara region.
The brother of Deputy Interior Minister Mehmet Aktaş is also targeted in the investigation.
In a post on social media, CHP chairman Özgür Özel described the case targeting Akpolat as “Yet another link in the chain of injustice from our politicized........
© Medyascope
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